User-interactive financial vehicle performance prediction, trading and training system and methods

1. A method for allowing a user, through a computer in telecommunication link with a system having access to financial and market data, to predict the performance of a financial vehicle and thereby provide training for trading options or evaluating predictions, which comprises:

providing a user interface, via the computer, which allows the user to specify a financial vehicle;

displaying, via the user interface, historical performance data for the financial vehicle specified by the user;

displaying, via the user interface, projected performance data for the financial vehicle;

receiving from the user, via the user interface, performance prediction for the financial vehicle for a time period;

receiving from the user, via the user interface, amount of money to leverage relating to the performance prediction for the financial vehicle for the time period;

storing the performance prediction for the financial vehicle and the amount of money leveraged;

calculating payoff amount based on the performance prediction for the financial vehicle and the amount of money leveraged; and

displaying, via the user interface, the calculated payoff amount.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the time period of the performance prediction for the financial vehicle received from the user is user selectable via the user interface.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the financial vehicle is a stock.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the financial vehicle is a foreign exchange rate.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the financial vehicle is an interest rate.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the financial vehicle is a market index.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the financial vehicle is a government obligation rate.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the financial vehicle is a corporate bond rate.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the historical performance data for the financial vehicle is displayed for a time period selectable by the user via the user interface.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is displayed as a distribution curve.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is displayed for a time period selectable by the user via the user interface.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is based on call and put options contracts for the financial vehicle.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is based on statistical analyses of the historical performance data for the financial vehicle.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is based on projections of members of the financial community studying the financial vehicle.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the performance prediction for the financial vehicle received from the user comprises a range of values.

16. In a system having access to financial and market data, the system being in telecommunication link with at least one user computer, a method for allowing a user of a user computer to predict the performance of a financial vehicle and thereby provide training for trading options and evaluating predictions, which comprises:

providing a user interface, via the user computer, having a first user selectable element and a second user selectable element;

receiving from the user, via the user interface, selection of a financial vehicle;

displaying, via the user interface, historical performance data for the financial vehicle selected by the user;

allowing the user, via the first user selectable element, to specify a time period for predicting the performance of the financial vehicle;

allowing a user, via the second user selectable element, to specify performance prediction of the financial vehicle for the time period;

receiving from the user, via the user interface, amount of money to leverage relating to the performance prediction of the financial vehicle for the time period;

causing storage of the performance prediction for the financial vehicle and the amount of money leveraged;

calculating payoff amount based on the performance prediction for the financial vehicle and the amount of money leveraged; and

displaying, via the user interface, the calculated payoff amount.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the financial vehicle is a stock.

18. The method of claim 16 , wherein the financial vehicle is a foreign exchange rate.

19. The method of claim 16 , wherein the financial vehicle is a market index.

20. The method of claim 16 , wherein the financial vehicle is a government obligation rate.

21. The method of claim 16 , wherein the historical performance data for the financial vehicle is displayed form a time period selectable by the user via the user interface.

22. The method of claim 16 , which further comprises displaying, via the user interface, projected performance data for the financial vehicle.

23. The method of claim 22 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is displayed as a distribution curve.

24. The method of claim 22 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is displayed for a time period selectable by the user via the user interface.

25. The method of claim 22 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is based on call and put options contracts for the financial vehicle.

26. The method of claim 22 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is based on statistical analyses of the historical performance data for the financial vehicle.

27. The method of claim 22 , wherein the projected performance data for the financial vehicle is based on projections of members of the financial community studying the financial vehicle.

28. The method of claim 16 , wherein the performance prediction for the financial vehicle specified by the user comprises a range of values.

29. A user-interactive system for allowing a user, through a computer in telecommunication link with the system, to predict the performance of a financial vehicle and thereby provide training for trading options or evaluating predictions, the system having electronic access to financial and market data and comprising:

a system computer having a microprocessor, the system computer providing a user interface to the user computer through which the user can specify a financial vehicle;

a first set of software codes executing on the microprocessor, the first set of software codes causing the user interface to display historical performance data for the financial vehicle specified by the user;

a second set of software codes executing on the microprocessor, the second set of software codes causing storage of performance prediction for the financial vehicle received from the user via the user interface;

the second set of software codes also causing storage of amount of money to leverage received from the user via the user interface, the amount of money to leverage relating to the performance prediction for the financial vehicle; and

a third set of software codes executing on the microprocessor, the third set of software codes calculating payoff amount based on the performance prediction for the financial vehicle and the amount of money leveraged, and displaying the payoff amount on the user interface.

30. The system of claim 29 , wherein the first set of software codes and the second set of software codes are part of the same set of software codes.

31. The system of claim 29 , wherein the second set of software codes and the third set of software codes are part of the same set of software codes.

32. The system of claim 29 , wherein the first, second and third sets of software codes are part of the same set of software codes.

33. The system of claim 29 , wherein the first set of software codes also causes the user interface to display projected performance data for the financial vehicle.